Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden (Gardening Guides Series)

Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden shows how to grow food at home in even the smallest of spaces. It explores the reasons for growing your own food, including the many potential benefits such as improved taste, freshness and nutrition. Many types of food are covered, such as vegetables, fruits, herbs and edible flowers.This practical book discusses the importance of growing open-pollinated varieties, and provides detailed instructions for successfully growing plants from seeds. Plant care is explained, including organic pest and weed control and efficient watering methods. In addition, readers are shown how to improve soil fertility by making their own fertilizer.Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden also offers solutions on incorporating food plants with other plants to create beautiful gardens in spaces such as balconies, flowerbeds and shrubbery. This is complemented with information on innovative techniques such as aquaponics, hydroponics, wicking beds and grid gardening to achieve high productivity in small spaces. The final chapter concerns harvesting and storing produce, and contains some simple recipes.Features:Gives innovative and economical methods for growing food in restricted spaces, even indoors Shows how to incorporate a wide variety of food plants into a garden Suggests spaces not normally thought of for growing food Follows a chemical-free approach to gardening Shows how to create free garden nutrients from kitchen waste Based on the author's first-hand experience and 20 years as editor of Grass Roots magazine Cover......Page 1 Dedication......Page 3 Title Page......Page 4 9780643095977......Page 5 Contents......Page 6 Part One All About The Garden 1......Page 12 Harvested Unripe......Page 14 Location, Location, Location......Page 26 Permaculture......Page 44 Clay Soils......Page 66 Replacing A Tree Or Shrub......Page 94 Hybrid Or Open-pollinated?......Page 110 Weed Control......Page 120 Part Two All About The Plants 131......Page 142 Asian Greens......Page 144 Acerola......Page 176 Apple Dumpling/common Apple Berry......Page 198 Basil, Sweet......Page 204 Tomato Paste......Page 218 Final Words......Page 224 Acknowledgements......Page 8 Introduction......Page 10 Economy......Page 15 Nutrition And Health......Page 16 European Union Study......Page 17 No Chemicals......Page 18 Environmental Health......Page 19 Ecological Footprint In Hectares Per Person......Page 20 Food Miles......Page 21 Feel-good Factor......Page 22 For The Children......Page 23 Action Plan......Page 24 Flowers As Food......Page 27 Go For Height......Page 29 Go Delightfully Potty......Page 31 Be Inventive......Page 32 Balconies, Courtyards And Rooftops......Page 33 Do Away With The Lawn......Page 34 Fruitful Concepts......Page 35 Dwarfing Rootstock......Page 36 Edible Cacti And Succulents......Page 37 Bush Tucker......Page 38 Rare And Unusual......Page 39 Plants For Birds And Insects......Page 40 For Nectar And Pollen Feeders......Page 41 More Uses For Plants......Page 42 Multiple Uses......Page 45 In The Pumpkin Patch......Page 46 Poultry......Page 47 Swales......Page 49 Other Animals......Page 48 Aquaponics......Page 50 Practical Tips......Page 51 Hydroponics......Page 52 Wicking Beds......Page 54 Earthbox......Page 53 Wicked Adaptation......Page 55 Raised No-dig Beds......Page 56 How To Make A No-dig Bed......Page 57 Planting Out The No-dig Bed......Page 59 No-dig Tank Bed......Page 60 Square Foot Gardening......Page 61 Sprouting......Page 62 Action Plan......Page 63 Aquaponics/hydroponics......Page 64 Improving Soil Structure......Page 67 Managing Soil Ph......Page 68 Soil Biota Working For You......Page 69 Diet For Active Micro-organisms......Page 70 Mycorrhizal Fungi......Page 71 Soil Nutrients And Ph......Page 72 Organic Fertilisers......Page 73 Fish Emulsion......Page 74 Manures......Page 75 Compost......Page 76 Vermicompost And Worm Juice......Page 81 Bokashi Bucket......Page 83 Compost Tea......Page 84 Green Weed Tea......Page 85 Green Manures......Page 86 Adjusting Ph In Potting Mix Before Planting......Page 87 Fertiliser Timing......Page 88 Practicalities Of Potting......Page 89 The Humus Connection......Page 90 Compaction Is Your Enemy......Page 91 Fertiliser In The Planting Hole?......Page 96 Fertiliser For Fruit Trees......Page 95 Replacing Flowering Annuals......Page 97 Narrow Strips......Page 98 Lawn Herbs......Page 99 More Productive Possibilities......Page 100 Design Ideas......Page 101 A Dedicated Vegie Patch......Page 102 Planting Vegetables......Page 103 Fabaceae Family......Page 104 Balcony/verandah/patio/rooftop/ Courtyard......Page 105 Pot Care......Page 106 Hydroponics Or Aquaponics......Page 108 The Challenge Of Shade......Page 109 How Do You Know If It Is Open-pollinated?......Page 111 Outdoor Or Indoor Sowing?......Page 112 Dug Beds......Page 113 Care Of Seed Bed......Page 114 Planting The Seeds......Page 115 The Propagator......Page 116 Transplanting......Page 117 Egg Cartons Or Newspaper......Page 118 Jiffy Pots......Page 119 Sheet Mulch......Page 121 Use Grey Water......Page 123 Laundry......Page 124 Grey Water Cautions......Page 125 Sun......Page 126 Pipe Method......Page 127 Eco Bags......Page 128 Dripper And Seeper Hoses......Page 129 Choose Hardy Plants......Page 130 Timing......Page 131 Birds And Beneficial Insects......Page 132 Frogs, Lizards, Spiders......Page 134 Physical Barriers......Page 135 Codling Moth......Page 136 Organically Acceptable Commercial Products......Page 137 Fungicidal Sprays......Page 138 Insect Pests......Page 139 Fungal Diseases......Page 140 Save Seeds......Page 145 Beans......Page 146 Nutrition......Page 147 Broad Beans......Page 148 Harvest And Store......Page 149 Nutrition......Page 150 Soil......Page 151 Carrot......Page 152 Harvest And Store......Page 153 Soil......Page 154 Soil......Page 155 Lettuce......Page 156 Soil......Page 157 Radicchio......Page 158 Soil......Page 159 Save Seeds......Page 160 Peas......Page 161 Use......Page 162 Sow......Page 163 A Plethora Of Choices......Page 164 Harvest And Store......Page 165 Soil......Page 166 Pollination......Page 167 Save Seeds......Page 168 Soil......Page 169 Silverbeet......Page 170 Save Seeds......Page 171 Tomato......Page 172 Sow......Page 173 Use......Page 174 Save Seeds......Page 175 Apple......Page 177 Apricot......Page 178 Babaco......Page 179 Banana......Page 180 Blueberry......Page 182 Feijoa......Page 183 Goji Berry......Page 184 Grape......Page 185 Lemon......Page 186 Passionfruit......Page 187 Pawpaw......Page 188 Peach......Page 189 Pineapple......Page 190 Plum......Page 191 Raspberry......Page 192 Strawberry......Page 194 Large Kangaroo Apple......Page 199 Lilly Pilly......Page 200 Muntries/muntari......Page 201 Prickly Currant Bush......Page 202 Yam Daisy/murnong......Page 203 Bay Tree......Page 205 Calendula/pot Marigold......Page 206 Coriander......Page 207 Daylily......Page 208 Garlic......Page 209 Lavender......Page 210 Marjoram......Page 211 Mint......Page 212 Nasturtium......Page 213 Parsley, Curled......Page 214 Rosemary......Page 215 Thyme......Page 216 Method......Page 219 Ingredients......Page 220 Aromatic Rosemary Potatoes......Page 221 Method......Page 222 Method......Page 223 Appendix 1 Suppliers And Information......Page 225 Wet Pot......Page 226 Appendix 2 Bibliography......Page 227 Index......Page 228 Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden shows how to grow food at home in even the smallest of spaces. It explores the reasons for growing your own food, including the many potential benefits such as improved taste, freshness and nutrition. Many types of food are covered, such as vegetables, fruits, herbs and edible flowers. This practical book discusses the importance of growing open-pollinated varieties, and provides detailed instructions for successfully growing plants from seeds. Plant care is explained, including organic pest and weed control and efficient watering methods. In addition, readers are shown how to improve soil fertility by making their own fertilizer. Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden also offers solutions on incorporating food plants with other plants to create beautiful gardens in spaces such as balconies, flowerbeds and shrubbery. This is complemented with information on innovative techniques such as aquaponics, hydroponics, wicking beds and grid gardening to achieve high productivity in small spaces. The final chapter concerns harvesting and storing produce, and contains some simple recipes. Gives innovative and economical methods for growing food in restricted spaces, even indoors Shows how to incorporate a wide variety of food plants into a garden Suggests spaces not normally thought of for growing food Follows a chemical-free approach to gardening Shows how to create free garden nutrients from kitchen waste Based on the author's first-hand experience and 20 years as editor of Grass Roots magazine Fabulous Food from Every Small Garden shows how to grow food at home in even the smallest of spaces. It explores the reasons for growing your own food, including the many potential benefits such as improved taste, freshness and nutrition. Many types of food are covered, including vegetables, fruits, herbs, bush tucker plants and edible flowers. The book provides detailed instructions for successfully growing plants from seeds, and explains the use of organic pest and weed control and efficient watering methods. In addition, readers are shown how to improve soil fertility by making their own fertiliser. Written by the author of the best-selling Creating Your Eco-friendly Garden, this practical book also offers solutions on incorporating food plants with other plants to create beautiful gardens in spaces such as balconies and flowerbeds. This is complemented with information on innovative techniques such as aquaponics, hydroponics, wicking beds and grid gardening to achieve high productivity in small spaces. The final chapters concern growing, harvesting and storing produce, and contain some simple recipes. The book is aimed at people with small gardens who wish to grow some food at home. The author begins with a discussion on the reasons for growing your own food and covers the many benefits such as improved taste, freshness, and nutrition; all very important points when considering the increased handling and long storage time of fruit and vegetables offered by supermarkets